Kristin Lord on DOD’s $300m “Public Diplomacy” push

Today’s public diplomats wear boots, not wingtips. Increasingly, the Defense Department is at the forefront of US efforts to engage public opinion overseas. While the State Department formally leads the effort, the Pentagon has more money and personnel to carry out the public diplomacy mission.

This trend is risky. The message foreign publics receive – not the message the US sends – changes when the Pentagon is the messenger. Putting our military, not civilians, at the forefront of US global communications undercuts the likelihood of success, distorts priorities, and undermines the effectiveness of US civilian agencies.

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The Pentagon should play an important role in public diplomacy, but as a partner – not the principal. For its part, the Congress should give public diplomats the tools they need to do their jobs, and then hold them accountable.

2 Replies to “Kristin Lord on DOD’s $300m “Public Diplomacy” push”

Sorry, more a case of “great minds think alike”. My op ed predates Matt’s excellent post, as Matt himself can confirm. But blogs move faster than print newspapers, which is probably why blogs are thriving and newspapers are not.